Here are 30 new stories in the PA Environment Digest about individuals, groups, local governments, farmers, businesses, watershed groups and many more working all across Pennsylvania to restore and protect the environment and show others the beauty that surrounds us.

While PA Environment Digest’s priority is to highlight positive examples of environmental and energy leadership, 2022 is an election year which demands accountability to voters.

PA Environment Digest Is Putting The Best Links To Environment & Energy Articles and NewsClips Here.   Is Your Story Being Told?

The departments of Environmental Protection, Conservation and Natural Resources and Agriculture appear before House and Senate budget committees starting February 28.

Conventional oil and gas companies were issued over 4,270 notices of violation for abandoning oil and gas wells without plugging them in the last six years, according to DEP’s Oil and Gas Compliance Reporting system.

Conventional oil and gas companies were issued over 4,270 notices of violation for abandoning oil and gas wells without plugging them in 2016 through 2022, according to DEP’s Oil and Gas Compliance Reporting system.

On February 22, the Independent Fiscal Office issued its quarterly natural gas production report showing gas production increased 6.8 percent during calendar year 2021.

The Russian invasion of the Ukraine last week renewed a debate in the U.S. over what it means to be Energy Independent.

By Erin Frederick, Statewide Master Watershed Steward Coordinator

By Mimi Volker, Master Watershed Steward Volunteer

On February 25, The Nature Conservancy-PA announced it has completed the removal of the aging O’Conner dam and reservoir at the Eales Preserve on Moosic Mountain in Lackawanna County 

The Environmental Quality Board published notice in the February 26 PA Bulletin inviting public comments on proposed regulation to establish maximum contaminant levels goals (MCLGs) and maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) for community, nontransient noncommunity, and bottled, vended, retail, and bulk water systems.

By Susan Boser, Extension Educator

The Department of Environmental Protection is inviting public comment on Regional Water Resource components to the proposed update to the State Water Plan in six virtual regional public hearings.  (formal notice)

In 2021, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, its affiliates and partnering organizations collected a combined total of 2,201,881 pounds of electronics, 29,990 tires and 100,524 pounds of household hazardous waste.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice in the February 26 PA Bulletin it has approved the use of coal ash for structural fill to provide a support area for a data mining operation at the coal waste-fired Scrubgrass power plant in Kennerdell, Venango County.  (PA Bulletin page 1321)

The Department of Environmental Protection issued a Request for Information as part of an initiative under the Driving PA Forward Program to develop a Medium and Heavy-Duty Zero Emission Vehicle Pilot Grant Program.  (formal notice)

The Community Resilience Action Network of Erie is inviting public participation in a community vulnerability assessment to better understand how prepared various community sectors such as transportation systems, critical infrastructure, businesses, social facilities, and others are to severe weather hazards.

On February 22, PA Wilds announced a new campaign is being launched this year in the PA Wilds that could have positive impacts for many communities across the rural region.

By Andrew Bechdel, Susquehanna Greenway & Trails Assistant

On February 22, PennFuture President and CEO Jacquelyn Bonomo announced her retirement, effective July 2022, after a 37-year career in environmental advocacy.

The February 25 Take Five Fridays With Pam is now available from the PA Parks & Forests Foundation.

Opportunities to learn more about environmental and energy issues affecting Pennsylvania for students and adults--

By Alexandra McLaughlin

The Friends of Heinz Refuge in Philadelphia are hosting a 4-part webinar series on Preventing Plastic Pollution starting March 4.

Join Lancaster One Water Partnership hub and the Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake for a youth-focused event on March 13 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. to hear Dr. Bethany Wiggin of Penn Program in Environmental Humanities discuss her research project, My Climate Story.

The PA Waste Industries Association and the PA Keystone Chapter Of Solid Waste Association Of North America will host their 2022 Recycling Summit on March 14-15 at the Harrisburg Hilton.

The U.S. Department of Energy's Interagency Working Group on Coal and Power Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization will host a March 30 webinar on Repurposing Fossil Energy Assets from Noon to 5:00 p.m.

March 1 will kick off the Hawk Mountain Youth Art Month Contest, which runs all month with submissions due no later than March 31.

The information you need to follow legislation in the House and Senate- starting with articles and NewsClips from last week--

On February 25, Senate Republicans filed a motion with Commonwealth Court to intervene in opposition to the DEP lawsuit against the Legislative Reference Bureau to publish the final Carbon Pollution Reduction regulations covering power plants consistent with the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

Articles and NewsClips about federal actions impacting Pennsylvania--

On February 25, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is taking legal action to get Hanover Foods Corporation to address numerous alleged violations at the company’s wastewater treatment facility in Hanover, York County that included excessive levels of contaminants as well as floating solids and visible scum in the discharged water and receiving water.

Click Here for a list of public participation opportunities and a calendar of events.

Click Here for grants, awards, recognition programs and contest deadlines.

Highlights of the environmental and energy notices in the latest PA Bulletin--

Send your stories, photos and links to videos about your project, environmental issues or programs for publication in the PA Environment Digest to: PaEnviroDigest@gmail.com.

PA Environment Digest is a proud sponsor of the 2022 Watershed Forestry Summit, to be held virtually March 2-3 organized by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the Western PA Conservancy.   Click Here to register

PA Environment Digest is a supporting member of the PA Organization for Watersheds & Rivers, PA Outdoor Writers Association, PA Council Trout Unlimited and the Doc Fritchey Chapter Trout Unlimited.